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Friday, September 2, 2016

Garden Guest: Black Swallowtail

The north side of our front yard is a certified National Wildlife Federation Backyard Habitat. Really! We have a certificate! You can do the same by providing food, water, cover and places for wildlife to raise their young. It is so much fun to see all of the critters that stop by for a visit. I have a series of posts to show you our Garden﻿ Guests.

If you would like to see more, please take a look at my Gardening Page

I'm not completely sure which swallowtail this beauty is. Please feel free to correct me if this is not a Black Swallowtail. ;-) I will be grateful for the feedback. My best guess is Black Swallowtail, but the black form of Tiger Swallowtails frequently throw me off my game! ;-)

During this shoot, I actually captured two butterflies in the same frame... More than once!! I was so excited when they were downloaded. Do you see the second butterfly in the photo above?

I love that in this shot one butterfly has landed and the other is approaching.

'Not quite in focus, but anyone who attempts nature photography will appreciate my excitement that the frame holds TWO butterflies IN FLIGHT! Be still, my beating heart! ;-)

I hope you get to enjoy the peaceful sound of wings that gently flutter by and then pause.

It's been a while since I posted music. We had the chance to see Dan and Shay in concert when they were in Little Rock with The Band Perry and Blake Shelton. This song makes me smile. From the Ground Up.

That must be so incredible to photograph nature that way, such gorgeous butterflies. Your photos are excellent. About all that's happening in our back yard are lives of 5 chickens, birds that come to visit, eat some of chickens treats, have 3 or 4 pair of doves which hang out in our back yard. Our older cat goes out to watch chickens, no he doesn't chase or bother them, never has. Our dog tries to herd them now and then but mostly ignores chickens. Chickens like to hang out under our old Suburban parked in lower part of back yard. Can see them under there taking dirt baths.All kinds of wild birds come to roost in our trees and eat food we put out for them. Can't hear song as have hearing loss.Having good holiday weekend? Hope so.

Marci, your photos are a treat! That shot with both of them in flight is awesome.

I could be totally wrong, but that almost looks like the Pipevine Swallowtail... They have shorter "tails" and the wings are more rounded, plus they lack the red spots at the base of the wing. In the in-flight photo, it looks like they have a lot of blue on their backs, but they look more black in the still shots, so I can't really tell. Swallowtails can be so similar! I use this page to help identify mine, maybe it would help you with future visitors to your garden: http://butterfliesathome.com/black-swallowtail-butterfly-comparison.htm

Sorry for the long comment from a butterfly nerd! I really enjoyed your photos.

I did see that one! I get tons of those and the giant swallowtails in the fall, but I've never managed to get a photo of one without damage to its wings. I refuse to mow down the plants they breed on, but I never knew you could get a part of your yard certified as a habitat. I'm looking in to it, thanks to you!

I've been thinking of getting my backyard certified! I'm always striving to provide shelter and food for wildlife. I love inviting hummingbirds, bees, and other beneficial insects to my gardens. Stunning photographs :) Thank you so much for sharing with us this week at Dishing It & Digging It!

It's so nice to know that the north side of your front yard is a certified National Wildlife Federation Backyard Habitat. How lovely to live with so many wonderful living things. Thank you for sharing the Black Swallowtail with us at the Healthy, Happy, Green and Natural Party Blog Hop. I'm Pinning and sharing!

Lovely photos. They reminded me of my childhood when my brother and I would catch butterflies (I wince at that now). We had our butterfly books to identify the various swallowtails -- you didn't mention zebra swallowtails. How wonderful to have part of your yard certified. I saw your link at the Sweet Inspiration link party.

About Me

Hello! My name is Marci. Thank you for visiting! Our home is an old rock farmhouse built in the 1930s. There is a greenhouse, a vegetable garden, herbs, several flower beds, lots of hobbies and too many pets. I hope you enjoy this humble little blog! Some of my posts may contain affiliate links and I will receive a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on my link. Please note my blog is a product from Google who uses cookies to provide ad content relevant to each visitor.